Chapter 24

ChapterTwenty-Four

True New Englanders love three things: the Red Sox, Dunkin’s, and fall. Jeanie knew this, of course. She’d been one for the past decade, after all. But Dream Harbor’s Fall Festival was a whole new level of autumnal worship.

The town square and surrounding streets were closed to traffic to accommodate the multitude of tents and tables and activities. There was pumpkin decorating, caramel apples, and cider donuts (that Jeanie could not stop eating, even though she’d already had three). Annie was selling pies and cookies, and anything made with apples or pumpkins, or cinnamon-spiced. There were tents selling all types of witchy wares: crystals and spell books and very authentic-looking witch brooms. Kids were lined up to get their faces painted, or for balloon animals, or to jump in the enormous bounce house set up on the lawn.

It was madness.

Delightful, apple-pie scented madness.

Jeanie couldn’t help grinning from ear to ear as she sold cider and pumpkin-spiced lattes to the seemingly endless line of visitors. The day had started out cold, with a light frost on the grass, but the late fall sun had warmed things significantly by midday. Jeanie had even unwound her giant scarf and tossed aside her fingerless mittens.

Logan had worked beside her all morning, occasionally brushing his arm against hers or giving her a slow secret smile. It wasn’t exactly a proclamation of his intentions in front of the whole town, but she didn’t want that anyway. The fact that he was here beside her was enough. More than enough. It was doing all sorts of warm, swoopy things to her stomach, making the whole morning feel like it was cast in a glow of happiness. She wanted to curl up in the feeling, like Casper in a patch of sun.

‘Happy Fall Festival!’ Isabel stepped up to the table wearing an eerily accurate baby Yoda on her chest.

‘Hi, Isabel! Hi, Mateo!’

Mateo-Yoda gurgled happily in return.

‘Enjoying your first festival, Jeanie?’ she asked, deftly sipping from her coffee while keeping the hot cup out of Mateo’s reach. ‘Hi, Logan.’

‘Isabel, hey.’

‘I am. This is really pretty incredible. I like your hair.’ Jeanie gestured toward Isabel’s classic Princess Leia buns.

‘Oh, thanks. It’s a whole theme. There’s a Mandalorian and a little stormtrooper walking around somewhere, but Mommy needs coffee if she’s going to survive this day. I woke up to said stormtrooper leaning over my bed fully costumed at four this morning.’

‘Yikes,’ said Jeanie, with a grin.

Isabel smiled back, her gaze flitting between Jeanie and Logan. Heat crept up Jeanie’s cheeks. Isabel knew. Somehow, with her secret mom and romance-reader powers, she knew exactly what was going on between Jeanie and Logan. Which was crazy because Jeanie wasn’t even totally clear on it herself.

In fact, she half expected Logan to put distance between them, to find cups to stack, or the next customer to serve, but instead, he shifted closer. His broad shoulder brushed hers again, the back of his hand skimming her fingers.

It felt like a declaration.

Isabel smiled wider.

It was a declaration.

Quiet and sure and steady, just like Logan. He linked his fingers with hers and Jeanie’s heart fluttered. Maybe he was serious about this thing between them, after all. Maybe New Jeanie was about to get the sexy farmer, even if he had seen her as a hot mess again this morning. Her heart kicked up its flutter into high gear.

‘Well, I’ll see you at the costume contest later,’ Isabel said, excitement glinting in her eyes. She patted little Yoda on the head. ‘Come on, Yoda, let’s go find Mando.’

Jeanie waved goodbye and Logan slowly pulled his hand away, needing it to help the next customer, but not before he glanced down at her with another secret smile teasing the corner of his mouth.

‘How long before everyone knows?’ Jeanie asked quietly, smiling at the customers as she spoke.

She could sense his shrug without even looking at him. ‘Not long.’

‘And you’re fine with that?’ She handed Greg and Shawn their hot ciders. ‘Have fun, guys!’

Greg raised his cup in a Fall Festival cheers gesture and the two walked away, leaving Jeanie and Logan alone for the moment.

‘I’m fine with it. Are you?’

Jeanie swallowed hard, suddenly feeling the weight of what they were doing. Suddenly remembering that the eyes of the town on them meant that everyone would be looking at her, too. What if things didn’t work out? What if she actually had no idea how to have a serious relationship? She never had before. Panic flashed hot in her gut.

Why was all of this occurring to her now, when this sweet, sweet man was trying so hard to make her happy? Had his kisses scrambled her brain that much?!

Damn it, Jeanie! Get it together.

She pushed a smile onto her face.

‘Yep. Totally fine with it.’

Logan studied her a minute longer, his blue eyes searching hers until she had to glance away, afraid of what he’d find there.

‘Okay.’

‘Okay, great!’ she said, putting as much sunny cheerfulness into it as she could. ‘Joe should be here soon, and then we can go do our judging duties.’

‘Uh-huh.’ He glanced at her again, hesitant, a small frown creasing his brow.

She forced her smile bigger.

She’d wanted this, hadn’t she? She’d wanted Logan to choose her for real. But somehow, she’d conveniently forgotten that she had to get her shit together, too. She shook her head like she could rid herself of these damn doubts.

It was fine. Everything was fine. Maybe Isabel wouldn’t tell everyone about the world’s tiniest display of affection. Maybe everyone would be so swept up in the fall festivities that no one would care about her and Logan.

Maybe she was deluding herself.

* * *

Jeanie made a quick stop at Annie’s tent before she had to take up her judging post with Logan. She just needed a minute of space. And another donut.

‘Hey, George. Hey, Hazel.’ Annie’s baking partner stood behind the folding table turned makeshift counter. He greeted Jeanie with a friendly wave, while Hazel helped Annie unload more donuts from the fresh trays. How they’d managed to get warm donuts from the bakery to the tent was a mystery that Jeanie didn’t have time to solve.

‘Another donut?’ Annie asked with a grin.

‘Just one more.’

Hazel studied Jeanie with shrewd eyes as Annie handed her another sugar-covered delight. ‘What’s the matter?’ Hazel asked, zeroing in immediately on Jeanie’s turmoil. Did those glasses give her some kind of superpower?

Jeanie glanced around. Most people had moved toward the costume-contest stage, so the bakery tent was empty. ‘Well, it’s Logan.’

Annie crossed her arms over her chest, the teasing smile dropping from her face. George muttered something about suddenly having an interest in buying some sage to clear the bad energy out of his apartment and scurried out of the tent.

‘Of course, it’s Logan,’ Hazel said, leaning her elbows on the table. ‘What happened?’

‘Uh...’ Jeanie fidgeted under Annie’s stare. ‘We ... well ... I think maybe he just held my hand in front of Isabel, so probably everyone will hear about that soon, and I really like him.’ She swallowed hard. ‘And he likes me. I’m pretty sure. And now I’m freaking out a little bit because I don’t think I’m very good at this.’

‘At what?’ Hazel asked, while Annie’s narrowed eyes did nothing to ease the tension in Jeanie’s gut.

‘At everything? Life, I think. Definitely dating. And you guys warned me, I know, and I just don’t want to mess things up and I don’t want the town to hate me if I do.’

She bit down on her lip and waited for their judgment or anger or support. She still wasn’t sure which way it would go.

‘No one’s going to hate you, Jeanie,’ Hazel said.

Jeanie glanced at Annie, whose mouth was set in a grim line. Not super convincing.

‘And besides, everyone is bad at life in one way or another,’ Hazel added.

Jeanie sighed. ‘It just used to feel like maybe I was good at it. I had my job, and I did it well and I just ... I don’t know, I did what I was supposed to do. And now, here ... it’s not as clear.’

‘There’s no ‘supposed to do’ Jeanie,’ Hazel said, her eyes earnest behind her glasses.

‘I know. That’s the problem, I guess. I feel a little lost.’

‘Look,’ Annie said, finally breaking her silence. ‘All you can do is the best you can do.’

Jeanie nodded slowly, trying to take that in. ‘Okaaay . . .’

Annie huffed. ‘Stop trying to do it exactly right. You and Logan are both adults. If you want to be together, then you should be.’

‘Really?’

‘Of course.’

‘You’re not, like, mad at me or something?’

Hazel glanced at Annie’s still rigid posture. ‘You are kinda giving that impression.’

Annie shook out her arms. ‘Sorry. It’s just, there’s a lot of history there. And when you first got here, we really didn’t know if you’d stick around, and Lucy treated Logan like he was a stop on her little self-exploration journey. I don’t want to see that happen again.’

‘Right.’ Jeanie swallowed hard, thinking about the stack of real-estate papers currently sitting on her table, and the fact that at least one of her employees was working on some kind of quiet vendetta. And how she had no idea what to do about any of it.

‘Anyway.’ Annie shrugged. ‘You should go for it. With Logan. It’ll work out or it won’t, but lucky for you the town can’t live without its caffeine, so people will have to forgive you pretty quickly.’ A smile finally crossed her face and Jeanie relaxed. A little bit.

Maybe they were right. She was overthinking this whole thing. And overthinking was not her style anymore. She blew out a long sigh. Right, time to go soak in all the fall goodness. She would figure out who was sabotaging her business tomorrow. Not today. Not on Fall Festival day!

Not when she had a sweet, sexy man waiting for her to judge some adorable Halloween costumes. Duty called.

‘Okay, thanks.’ She finished her donut. ‘I’m off to judge the costume contest.’

‘Oh, God, I forgot you got roped into that.’ Hazel’s face paled.

Annie grimaced. ‘Yeah, good luck.’